Many students don't believe in outlining.
They feel that it's a tedious, time consuming step in the writing process
that simply isn't necessary, that it's "busy work" that actually hinders
their creative process. Not true.

Outlining is an essential part of the writing
process, particularly so when writing papers that require research. Outlining
gives you a plan of attack, a map to follow as you proceed from your introduction
all the way to your conclusion. By using an outline, you can evaluate the
logic of your argument, the relevance of your facts, opinions, and examples,
and the effectiveness of your paragraph organization.

Being able to refer to your trial outline
after completing your first draft allows you to see whether you've been
true to your purpose--whether you've stuck to your original game plan.
If you haven't, you can then examine why. If your ideas in the draft don't
follow the same logical sequence you planned in your outline, then you
need to either rearrange them so that they do or re-evaluate the outline
itself.

As with the note card method of note taking,
I strongly recommend using an outline.

Sample Outline from Comp 101 Student

Now That is Funny

Thesis: The definition of funny
has changed significantly over the last
few years; the consequences of this change, although interesting,
may in fact have negative effects on young people.

I. The basic concept
of
funny hasn't changed.

A. Explain the definition of funny.

B. Funny is causing laughter or amusement.

C. Funny is anything intended or designed to amuse.

II. However, how we get to that level
of amusement seems to be changing,
and this can be seen if one compares and contrasts popular
movies and sitcoms from different generations.

A. I Love Lucy is a popular comedy from the 1950's.

B. The Mary Tyler Moore Show is a popular comedy from
the late 60's and early 70s.

C. South Park is a popular cartoon currently on the air.

D. Ally McBeal is one of TV's leading comedies.

E. Friends is one of TV's leading comedies.

III. Stand-up comedy has put a new
twist into the comic
industry and into what is considered "funny."

A. Sinbad has a clear cut, non-offensive approach, but he
hasn't had the same commercial success as some comedians
who are more hard core.

B. Chris Rock (conversely) is one of the most controversial
comedians of our generation, but he also uses a lot of vulgar
language and doesn't shy away from "taboo" subject matter.

IV. Many of the leading Hollywood
comedies use shock
value to invite audiences in.

A. There's Something About Mary is a perfect example
of using shock value.

B. Pulp Fiction did so as well but perhaps in an
even more shocking way.

V. Many movies, shows, and comedians
use stereotypes.

A. Racial stereotypes are commonly played off, both in satirical
and non-satirical ways (examples).

B. Gender stereotypes follow the same pattern: sometimes
the dumb blonde is really a dumb blond, but other times she
is being used to criticize the stereotype itself (examples).

C. The same is true for homosexual/lesbian stereotypes (Ellen).

VI. I conducted interviews with college
students asking them
why such movies, TV Shows, and comedians are "funny."

A. Most frequent answer given was "I can
relate to the humor."

B. Second most frequent answer was "because they say
things we aren't supposed to say."

VII. The entertainment industry has
recently been targeting
younger audiences.

A. I'll cite two recent viewing/demographic studies.

B. A 1998 study indicates target viewing ages for the
four major networks are from 14-24 years old.

C. A 1999 study (different source) supports the 1998 findings.

VIII. Conclusion: Our generations
conception of what "funny" is has reached a level of sophistication that
depends heavily on satire, irony, and black comedy. In many ways, one could
argue that it's more sophisticated than those of the past. However, it
may be more dangerous too because not everyone appreciates nor understands
satirical humor--especially very young and very old audience--and the consequences
of misinterpreting this type of humor can actually reinforce negative stereotypes
and cruel, non-empathetic behavior.__________________________________________

Commentary

You should be able to see a few holes in this
student's argument. Notice the omission of counter-argument.
Also notice some assumptions the conclusion makes about the younger and
older audiences. The thesis also appears to need some fine-tuning.
Each of those items should be addressed during the revision process.

On a more positive note, if the student's
rough draft follows the organization of this outline, the student would
be doing pretty well. It's a fairly solid game plan.
And the outline allows us to see the plan's strengths and weaknesses more
clearly and efficiently than a quick reading of the essay might.